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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · clip · bear · march · fork · cell · chip · rash

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. march — the month
  3. rule — a law
  4. rash — a series
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. clip — a video
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. march — music
  11. bear — the animal
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rule — government
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. march — the month
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — a phone
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com